"Financial instability! As I speak, my husband retired as a civil servant, and his monthly pension is $180. Considering that I still have my son who is yet to join college, this has eaten up my mind because the income can not sustain our needs including paying the tuition fee. For this reason, we have been postponing any intake, something that I feel might discourage him. In addition, I have a huge debt of $750 that I borrowed from our silk group to support my son who was in his fourth year on campus. The stress of trying to balance our ends to meet has become a challenge and this is what I consider a menace in my life."

"I learnt how to make hair in 2013 but since my parents did not have much money they couldn't help me open a hair salon. Over the years I worked to get the salon I have but its still a small business. I have a dream of having a big salon in a big city or town. This is a costly affair. I am saving to enable me fulfill this dream. I am working towards building a bigger business so I can be able to increase my income and even use skills I haven't used for long since in the village people make very simple hair styles but in the city people are quite different."

"We started a savings group when Givedirectly came in as a way of supporting each other to achieve our goals. We usually save and give cash to each of us at different times as in merry go round so that we can actualise that which we have envisioned. I personally have wanted to venture into business but I have not been able to do any business due to lack of capital. Now I can plan towards meeting this vision. I want to start a grocery stall which I hope will grow to a general item shop."

"I have had a dream of getting a bigger house but it seemed like a far fetched thing until Givedirectly came my way. I have been able to buy 8 sheets of iron sheet out of the twenty that I need to ensure I can finish my house. I have a one roomed house but I would want a two roomed house since my children are growing up and the one room is no linger enough for us. I do not like that my children will sometimes have to sleep with their grandparents because we do not have sufficient space, My goal is to complete that house and becoming self sufficient in terms of space for my family."

"I would like to become a chicken farmer. I am still a student now in my form two education. I have learnt that with sacrifice I can achieve my dream and I have sacrificed in terms of how I spend my transfers to ensure my school fees is paid in full but also gotten Chicken to continue adding to the flock and now I am at 24 chicken. I would like to grow this even further to ensure this chicken business is stable. Through this transfers I hope to grow a business that will feed me until I clear school and also get something to do after I clear school fees."

"I am so glad I am in a savings group. I joined the savings group after Joining the Givedirectly program. I want to get to $15 in savings which we hope to distribute to each person once their turn comes. I want to use this savings to buy a goat or sheep which I believe will contribute building wealth. Animals have a huge turnover in profit which I would like to be part of the beneficiaries. I may even buy a cow which has better returns since I can milk and sell it to the locals."

"I am building my farm to become an animal rearer. I plan to increase the herds even as the year comes along. I believe that animals are profitable and that one can really grow from keeping them. I do Motorcycle business which means I make some income even though not sufficient to achieve this dream of rearing animals which I have gotten through the transfers mostly. My aim is to increase this animals further which means I will be able to become fully sufficient as animals make a profit always."

"I am a single mother living with my five children. I live as a scotter in a land that belongs to a neighbor who lives at Matsangoni. I can not do any development projects in this land. I do casual jobs earning approximately $20 per month which caters for food and school fees to my children. I lack the capacity to buy my own land."

"I would like to get some animals for myself. I have been spending a majority of the amount I receive for my transfers on my children's school fees. I have 5 children in school and each requires about $37 in a term for their school fees. I have been paying this in bits monthly from the cash transfers we receive from Givedirectly. I want them to get a good education but I know secondary school will have more requirements monthly in terms of cash and this means I need to create an emergency fund. I want to buy animals to be my emergency fund. I believe the rate at which animals such as chicken and goats multiply I will have a sufficient number that I can sell and take them through high school."

"I want my children to get an education. I am a widow that means I do not have someone to share the burdens of childcare with. I used to make local food items and pastries and sell to locals but I couldn't make enough to take care of my children. I decided to go and seek out work as a house help in town so I can get some more cash than I was making with the business. I now earn around $40 monthly but this is still not sufficient for needs. My son in secondary school lives on his own which increases the expenses that he uses to get by for instance he pays rent of $3 monthly for the house he stays to access school. I can cover rent but school fees is still a big burden. My plan is to educate my children through this cash as it provides the relief to paying for education."